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You really had to experience the worshipful relationship between Bibi and American Jews in the 1990s to understand it. He was a revelation and a rock star. /1
Finally, an Israeli leader who could dramatically and articulately make the Jewish state’s case in accent-free English on podiums and on television. They kvelled and swooned /2
All this reached a King Bibi pinnacle in the 2000’s. Then the romance started going sour in 2015. Strike one was the collapse of the Western Wall deal. /3
American Jews felt deeply betrayed when Netanyahu backed out of a done deal, selling them out under the threat of the withdrawal of ultra-Orthodox political support /4
Strike Two was Donald Trump and Netanyahu turning a blind eye to Jewish concern over how Trump was emboldening white supremacy and anti-Semitism. This peaked, of course, with the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting. /5
The decision by Netanyahu to actively work towards the inclusion of Meir Kahane’s disciples in the Knesset and potentially the government coalition - definitely feels like Strike Three /END
Addendum: Together with the Wall crisis, I should have mentioned that for many American Jews, even leaders, Netanyahu’s 2015 Congress Iran Deal speech end run around the White House, crossed a line.
